The Razoni has become one of the most closely monitored ships in the world due to its status as the inaugural ship to leave the port of Odessa under a UN-brokered deal. The agreement opened a humanitarian corridor allowing cargo ships carrying Ukrainian grain — exclusive to the country’s ports since the start of the war — to pass through the Black Sea to Istanbul. Since it set sail earlier this month, the ship’s destination has been the subject of much speculation. The 26,500-tonne cargo failed to reach its originally declared destination of Lebanon after the buyer rejected it on quality grounds. The cargo was resold and, after unloading 1,500 tonnes of its cargo in Turkey, the ship appeared to be heading for its next declared destination, Egypt. Then on Friday, it stopped transmitting from its transponder, which transmits position and track information. The last signal was sent from the northwest coast of Cyprus. According to images from Planet Labs, a satellite photography group, seen by the Financial Times, the Sierra Leone-flagged ship was seen docking at the Syrian port of Tartus on Monday. Tartus is the location of a Russian naval base. Satellite pictures from the European Space Agency appeared to show the craft moored just outside Tartus on Saturday. “The vessel stopped transmitting its signal on 12 August just east of Cyprus and was seen heading towards port that morning. It then spent a couple of days at anchor before it docked,” said Samir Madani, co-founder of TankerTrackers, a research firm that tracks shipping. Grain and food trade with Syria does not contravene Western sanctions imposed on the Damascus regime over the country’s long civil war. However, some ships avoid sailing openly to the country because of the conditions of financial institutions, according to grain traders. Sixteen ships sailed from Ukrainian ports covered by the UN-brokered grain deal — Odessa, Chornomorsk and Pivdennyi. Photos from Planet Labs appear to show the Razoni visiting Syrian ports three times last year. At times it would stop sending transponder signals or “go dark”.

Contact details for Razoni are unavailable and the FT was unable to reach the company or the vessel’s crew. The UN-led Joint Coordination Center overseeing the deal did not respond to a request for comment on Monday. The JCC said its role is to ensure the safe passage of ships carrying Ukrainian food exports between the grain corridor and Istanbul and to check whether the ships are carrying unauthorized crew or cargo. It said it does not track where a ship sails after leaving Istanbul and that final destinations can change depending on commercial activity beyond its control.